The ABCD of Melting Pots

ABCD

`ABCD,` about an East Indian American family, is one of several ethnic films hoping for a wider appeal.

By JON MATSUMOTO, SPECIAL TO THE LOS ANGELES TIMES

When Krutin Patel co-wrote the script to his film ``ABCD`` in 1993, the most prominent East Indian in American pop culture was probably Apu from the television series ``The Simpsons.`` Eight years later, that animated convenience store clerk is still the most recognizably East Indian character in American television and film.

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The paucity of East Indian American representation in the popular arts in this country is a primary reason why Patel feels so passionately about his independently made drama, which captures the intriguing dynamics of an East Indian American family.

``ABCD,`` which opens Friday at selected theaters, is one of a handful of new films involving rarely seen immigrant American characters and scenarios. ``The Debut,`` which is currently in theaters, and ``American Adobo,`` which is slated to open in Los Angeles on Jan. 23, are both small movies reflecting Philippine American life. A coming-of-age film about a Philippine American teenager, ``The Debut`` opened in Los Angeles in early October and has grossed more than $1 million. Home to large Philippine American populations, the Los Angeles and San Francisco areas have accounted for 90% of the film`s box-office success, according to its distributor, 5 Card Productions.

All three of these films deal in some way with ethnic minority immigrants and their children trying to reconcile traditional cultural values with very different American attitudes.

In ``ABCD,`` two grown children react differently to the expectations of their loving but very traditional Indian-born mother (Madhur Jaffrey). Older brother Raj (Faran Tahir) tries to conform to her wishes. He has a very respectable job as a Manhattan accountant and is engaged to a traditional Indian woman he does not entirely love. His younger sister Nina (Sheetal Sheth) rebels against conservative Indian mores by dating non-Indian men and by embracing a sexually promiscuous lifestyle.

Having emigrated from India to the U.S. at age 8, Patel is familiar with the difficulty of trying to straddle the line between two cultures. Like many men with Indian immigrant parents, he felt the pressure to land a white-collar job. To appease his parents` concerns about his desire to enter the uncertain field of filmmaking, he majored in both film and finance at New York University. While he hopes to transition into filmmaking full time, Patel currently works in the marketing department at the Food Network in New York.

Ironically, previous screenings of the film have indicated that ``ABCD`` is unlikely to be fully embraced by the Indian American community, particularly by that segment which espouses conservative cultural values.

``The strongest reaction to the film has come, believe it or not, from non-Indian Americans,`` remarks Patel, who also directed and co-produced ``ABCD.`` ``There are those in the Indian American community who don`t want to see its dirty laundry hung in public. The portrayal of characters like Nina [makes them uncomfortable]. They want to keep their heads in the sand. In the Indian community the film will raise a few eyebrows. That`s a good thing because there will be debate about it. We tend to be a community that doesn`t communicate in regard to some of these harder issues.``

Nina is the film`s most complex character. She rebels against the sexual conservatism of her ethnic culture. Yet her contrary ways also keep her from finding the emotional intimacy in her romantic relationships that will lead to happiness. When she finds herself falling in love with an Indian man she reluctantly meets on a date arranged by her mother, she is disinclined to commit to the relationship.

Patel says the Nina character has sparked much debate during question-and-answer sessions following screenings of the film. Some Indian Americans have found her to be an inaccurate representation of their people. Others have found her to be very real.

Patel recalls, ``One of my memories of showing this at a film festival was a British Indian girl telling me, `That`s my life up there on screen.` I was like, `Wow, thank you.` Nina really translated to her experience.``

``ABCD,`` whose relatively polished look belies its modest $200,000 budget, couldn`t have been made without the financial help of Patel`s friends and relatives.

``After my parents came to America, they helped other Indian immigrants who subsequently came to this country,`` explains Patel, who spent about five years raising money to make his film. ``Some 30 years later I needed financial backing and they turned around and gave me that help.`` Only a few of the Indian American investors asked to read the script.

Moviegoing is hugely popular in India. But Patel believes there would be little interest there in a serious-minded film about an Indian American family. Bollywood, as the Indian film industry is known, generally produces escapist melodramas.

The hope is that films like ``ABCD`` and ``American Adobo`` will find audiences among independent film lovers and in specific minority communities in the increasingly multiethnic U.S. Patel says there are sizable Indian populations in most major American cities. ``ABCD`` is slated to open in 15 to 20 markets in North America.

Non-Indian audiences may not fully understand a few of the cultural subtleties of the film and some viewers may not empathize with Raj`s possible encounter with workplace discrimination. But Patel feels he has fashioned a movie that has mainstream allure.

``I always wanted to make sure that the movie appealed beyond Indian people,`` Patel insists. ``As we started showing it at festivals so many people would say to me, `I`m not Indian, but so much of this film I can relate to my own family.` That`s when I realized that the film really has a universal appeal. My writing and directing style is going for a certain realism. If you make characters that are human and real they will transcend ethnic lines.``

Dan, Hi

Read you article and really appreciated your gutts to share your feelings so openly. I sort of understand where you are coming from `cos I was born in America , when I was about 10 my family went back to Pakistan, and I returned back here two years ago. All I can say differently is that, I love America very very much. But if you haven`t been to Pakistan you don`t know what you are missing. When ever in life , if you get a chance, go there and spend a few months. I bet you`ll hate the Load Shedding and Violence but still you`ll feel a connection to it, which will change your life for ever.

I`m back now and America is my home, but I love Pakistan and always will!!.It`s soo home!! You`ve got to go there to know what I`m talking about!!.

N. Loya

Dan, Hi

Read you article and really appreciated your guts to share your feelings so openly. I sort of understand where you are coming from `cos I was born in America , when I was about 10 my family went back to Pakistan, and I returned back here two years ago. All I can say differently is that, I love America very very mich. But if you haven`t been to Pakistan you don`t know what you are missing. When ever in life , if you get a chance, go there a spend a few months. I bet you`ll hate the Lead Shedding and Violence but still you`ll feel a connection to it, whic`ll change your life for ever.

I`m back now and America is my home, but I love Pakistan and always will!!.It`s soo home!! You`ve got to go there to know what I`m talking about!!.

N. Loya

You should form your own set of values. Regardless of wether you are from, although I confess there is a limit to this approach. Beyond the realm of your understanding, it would be acceptable to go with the default.

Hi, Dan
Yes it is alright for you to say with pride that you are American, if that is what you do feel. But, to call all those who feel a conflict and a tension with this culture and their ancestral culture, ``self-righteous`` is not entirely fair.

Excellent article Dan.

I think that multi-culturalism is near impossible for people who haven`t lived among both cultures as you pointed out. How is one supposed to identify with the culture of one`s parents if they have never been submerged in it (and not just in a suburban American home)? I was fortunate enough to return to Pakistan when I was 14 and spend 3 very pivotal years there. However, the transformation into a multicultural entity was not immediate. I initially returned to college expecting a glorious return to my ``real`` homeland, the States. How wrong I was. Those three years had changed me irrevocably and I no longer could identify fully with America. The juxtaposition of both cultures within me has offered me the chance to fully appreciate the pros and cons of both sides.

Dan or Daniyal,
you should be proud to be who
you are and that is American. But remain aware that others who are at the fault
lines of cultures should have the right to
be who they are. Melting Pot or Salad Bowl,
in either case America will continue to absorb all of us one thought, year and generation at a time. There is nothing wrong with that.

Peace
Ras